Being chief is a choice

This is an old material and I must have featured it in my radio program, or perhaps in one of the previous books I have written. But, it still has a nice ring to it.

The Dakota Indians of North America passed on this piece of wisdom to generations by word of mouth - “If you are riding a dead horse, the best thing to do is dismount”. However, in the corporate world, because of the heavy investment factor, other things to be tried (but not limited to) are the following:

• Buy a stronger whip.

• Change riders.

• Threaten the horse with termination.

• Appoint a committee to study the horse.

• Arrange to visit other sites to see how they ride dead horses.

• Lower the standards so dead horses can be included.

• Appoint an intervention team to reanimate the horse.

• Create a training session to increase the riders load share.

• Reclassify the horse as “living impaired”.

• Change the form so it reads “This horse is not dead”.

• Hire outside contractors to ride the dead horse.

• Harness several dead horses together for increased speed and efficiency.

• Donate the dead horse to a recognized charity, therefore, deducting its full original cost.

• Provide additional funding to increase horse’s performance.

• Do a time management study to see if lighter riders would improve productivity.

• Purchase an after-market product that makes dead horses run faster.

• Declare the dead horse has lower overheads and is, therefore, more cost-effective.

• Form a quality-focused group to find profitable uses for dead horses

• Rewrite the performance requirements for horses.

• And finally, if all else fails...promote the dead horse into a supervisory (management) position.

Well, it looks like the old chiefs of the Dakota tribe are a lot wiser than many of the managers in business today.

Rick Miller wrote a book entitled “Being Chief is a Choice.”

There are lots of ideas about leadership and where it should come from. I believe that leadership, in general, and being chief, in particular, is a choice available to everyone.

Rick tells of his personal story and the lessons learned from his many family journeys. He talks about the importance of roadmaps. He says: “Consider roadmaps. Your driving preferences may change during different times and under different circumstances, but a roadmap will always offer alternatives. At times, the most direct way from A to B may not be the best way for you. Sometimes, you want to go fast. Other times, you want to slow down and enjoy the ride. Or, you might want to take a detour and travel through certain communities to reach your destination. And sometimes, you may just want to take a new road. ­Even tomorrow, when both your starting point and destination change, a roadmap will continue to serve you well.”

Early in my career, I relied on what I learned about roadmaps as an analogy for life. I believed that no matter where I wanted to go, there would always be a road to get me there. But, the analogy let me down when I found myself wanting to go places where others hadn’t ventured before—where there is no paved road. It was then that I came to appreciate the value of a compass. I learned that a compass is the ideal tool when you know what direction you’d like to go, but you are faced with the task of blazing a new trail. You might get advice and counsel from others that sets you off in the right direction, but getting to a new place will require your ability to listen closely to your own intuition, guided by your values, and to do things your own way.

You will find that you make stronger choices and are more successful as you get better at connecting what you do to who you are. It is from here that your true power derives. That’s your power compass and they contain five elements:

Values, insight, creativity, discipline, support—offer choices that can be made by anyone, independent of level or position in any group or organization.

What are these in detailed form? Well, this is when and where I encourage you to get his book entitled: “Being Chief is a Choice” and it will be available very soon.

It’s your choice to be chief, but it is your drive and determination that will ensure that you become a good chief.

(Attend two inspiring days of leadership training with Francis Kong in his highly acclaimed Level Up Leadership seminar-workshop for Sept. 18 to 19 at Makati Diamond Residences near Greenbelt 1. For registration or inquiries, contact April at +63928-559-1798 or register online at www.levelupleadership.ph)